TEHRAN- A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson has stated that Beijing opposes the "illegal" sanctions that the United States has placed on Iran under the guise of continuous unrest there caused by the death of a young lady who was detained by police and died at the hospital.

Mao Ning made the comments on Sunday during her regular press conference in response to a query regarding the U.S. decision to sanction Iranian officials in accordance with its own domestic law while threatening to impose sanctions on Iran in light of the current circumstances in the country.

“China is opposed to the U.S.’s illegal unilateral sanctions on Iran,” Mao said, adding that her country also opposes “interference in countries’ internal affairs under any pretext.”

She added, “We are against instigation of color revolutions in countries in the name of democracy and human rights.”

On Thursday, the U.S. Treasury Department issued a statement declaring sanctions on seven Iranian officials, including Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi and Minister of Communications and Information Technology Eisa Zarepour. Vahidi is accused of ordering the suppression of riots following the death of Mahsa Amini, and Zarepour is accused of leading attempts to block the country's internet access in an effort to quell the riots.

Nasser Kanaani, the spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, condemned the latest round of U.S. sanctions against Iran on Saturday, calling the restrictions the "backbone" of purported American human rights laws.

“Every day, a new list of sanctions against Iran is published under some pretext. This time, the Minister of Interior, the Minister of Communications and five other Iranian officials were sanctioned by the U.S. government,” he remarked.

The death of the 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini sparked protests first in her home province of Kurdistan and then spread to a few other cities, including the country's capital Tehran. On September 13, Amini was taken to a morality police station to be trained along with others on Islamic dress code, however she fainted and died three days later. 

Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi ordered a comprehensive inquiry into the issue shortly after Amini passed away, and an official report released on Friday said that her death had been brought on by a disease rather than rumors of blows to the skull or other important bodily parts.

After rowdy rioters killed police officers and vandalized public property in many places, what had first been peaceful demonstrations became violent.